MarcoGram August 2004 -- Exploring Ancient Greece

Exploring Ancient Greece
Greece stepped into the world spotlight this summer when it played host to thousands of athletes, trainers, judges and spectators who met in Athens for the 2004 Summer Olympic Games. This month, MarcoPolo features lessons and activities about the ancient Greeks and their influence on mythology, mathematics, geography and the modern alphabet. Use the activities below as a warm-up, then run, jump or dive right into the featured lessons and resources that follow.

Image of Athena courtesy of the Metropolitan Museum of Art (No. 1996.178).

1. Greek myths are stories of gods, goddesses, heroes and beasts that performed amazing feats. For example, when Zeus, god of all Olympians, complained of a headache, Hephaestus hit him on the head with an axe. Emerging from the wound was Athena, who became the goddess of war and was thought to have guided many Greeks to victory during battle.

What do Ajax, Atlas, Nike and Pluto have in common? (Answer: They are all characters in Greek mythology whose names have been adopted for modern uses.) What are the names of some other Greek heroes or gods? What were their claims to fame?

Separate students into groups of three or four and assign each group a character from Greek mythology. Have the groups use Internet or library resources to find biographical information about their characters. Then, ask each group to act out its character's myth, using narration, props and costumes.

Explore Greek mythology in:

"Elements of Myths" (5-8) from ARTSEDGE, The John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts

"Greek Mythology: Cultures and Art" (K-4) from ARTSEDGE, The John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts

"It Came from Greek Mythology" (3-5) from EDSITEment, National Endowment for the Humanities

"Making Connections to Myth and Folktale: The Many Ways to Rainy Mountain" (9-12) from ReadWriteThink, International Reading Association and the National Council of Teachers of English

2. Greek philosopher Pythagoras (c. 582–c. 507 B.C.) believed all relationships could be explained with numbers, so it's no wonder that a geometric theorem was named after him. The Pythagorean theorem (a² + b² = c²) explains that in a right triangle, the sum of the squares of two sides equals the square of the hypotenuse (the longest side).

Set up the following scenario for your students: Two Olympic athletes want to race each other on foot. One runs due west for 6 kilometers and stops, and the other runs due north for 9 kilometers and stops. Using the Pythagorean theorem, calculate the shortest distance between them. (Answer: 10.8 kilometers.) How much further would each have to run to meet in the exact middle? (Answer: 5.4 kilometers.) Are there other Olympic sports in which you might use the Pythagorean theorem to calculate distance?

Use an ancient Greek equation to solve geometric problems in:

"Games, Measurement and Statistics" (1-8) from Illuminations, The National Council of Teachers of Mathematics

"Geometry in the Middle Grades" (6-8) from Illuminations, The National Council of Teachers of Mathematics

"Mathematical Proofs" (9-12) from Science NetLinks, American Association for the Advancement of Science

"Understanding the Pythagorean Relationship Using Interactive Figures" (6-8) from Illuminations, The National Council of Teachers of Mathematics

3. Many English words were derived from the Greek language -- for example, the word "alphabet" is derived from alpha and beta, the first two letters in the Greek alphabet. Even though the Greeks use different symbols in their alphabet, it's not difficult to see how today's English (or "Roman") alphabet evolved from ancient Greek letters.

Using the Alphabet Interactive from EDSITEment, show students the Greek and Roman alphabets. What letters are similar to each other? Which are different? Which alphabet has more letters? Download a PDF of the Greek alphabet from EDSITEment and cut out each character for students to use in a game of memory. As they find and match the same characters, discuss the shape of each letter and its Roman counterpart. Finally, have each student spell his or her first name using Greek characters.

Explore the shapes and sounds of the alphabet in:

"Letter Recognition and Sound Identification" (K-2) from ReadWriteThink, International Reading Association and the National Council of Teachers of English

"The Greek Alphabet: More Familiar Than You Think!" (K-2) from EDSITEment, National Endowment for the Humanities

"The Olympic Medal: It's All Greek to Us!" (3-5) from EDSITEment, National Endowment for the Humanities

4. The Ancient Greeks lived on a mountainous peninsula, which was surrounded by the Aegean, Mediterranean and Ionian Seas. The Greeks learned how to harness and use their natural resources, such as fish, minerals and stones, to feed, protect and shelter themselves for thousands of years.

Identify some natural resources. (Answers can include water, trees, animals, minerals.) How do we use these natural resources in everyday life? (Use trees to make houses and boats, water to irrigate fields or bathe, minerals to shape into coins, animals for food or transportation.) Ask students to identify natural resources in the community. What would happen if all the natural resources were used up? For example, what are the consequences of cutting down trees to build houses or diverting a stream to a water-purification plant? What can students do to help conserve their natural resources?

Discover how ancient civilizations used their natural resources in:

"Greek and Roman Land Use: What Was the Difference?" (6-8) from Xpeditions, National Geographic Society

"Urban Ecosystems 2: Why Are There Cities? A Historical Perspective" (6-8) from Science NetLinks, American Association for the Advancement of Science

"Using Geography to Learn About History" (9-12) from Xpeditions, National Geographic Society

"Water, Water, Everywhere" (K-2) from EconEdLink, National Council on Economic Education